POLICE FILE CRIMINAL CHARGE AGAINST MTN, TOP MANAGERS OVER DISPUTE WITH EMPLOYEE

The Nigerian Police Force (NPF) has filed a four-count criminal charge at the Federal High Court, Abuja against MTN Communications PLC and two others, Mr. Olawale Rasheed Ajibade, the manager of MTN’s Modern Workplace IT division and Ms. Lilian Binda, MTN Abuja Regional Office Adviser for Organizational Effectiveness and Performance.

The case, filed under Charge No: FHC/ABJ/CR/285/2625 - Inspector General of Police versus MTN Nigeria Communication PLV, Olawale Rasheed Ajibade and Lilian Binda - follows a petition by a former staff of MTN Nigeria Communication PLC, Chief Christopher Oyemike over alleged misclassification of employment status and wage entitlement dispute.

Oyemike, in a petition to the Deputy Inspector General of Police, Federal Criminal Investigations Division (FCID), Abuja had, among other things, alleged that MTN may have compromised the investigations originally carried out by the Delta State Police Command, Asaba where the findings of police investigation stated that Oyemike’s case has merits.

According to court documents, the charges against MTN border on cybercrimes, computer data alteration, suppression and tampering with lawful evidence. The case is linked to arbitration meeting at the instance of the Minister of State for Labor and Productivity between Oyemike and MTN.

During the conciliation meeting at the instance of the Minister of State for Labor and Productivity, MTN was said to have insisted that Oyemike was no longer their staff and was not entitled to any payment. On the contrary, Oyemike maintained that he was still an MTN staff member by law and entitled to all emoluments that his employment by MTN offered.

When neither party could agree, the office of the Minister of State for Labor and Productivity advised parties to await its report before taking any further steps in the dispute. The report dated 9th June, 2023, advised Oyemike that his only recourse was to approach the court if I am not satisfied with MTN’s position.

However, on 31st June, 2023, Oyemike claimed that he received an alert confirming payment to his account by MTN, adding that both the Minister of State for Labor and Productivity report and MTN payment were communicated through his official MTN email account -Christopher.oyemike@mtn.com.

Oyemike alleges that MTN, acting through Ajibade and Binda, unlawfully accessed his official email account and deleted email correspondence with the Minister of State for Labor and Productivity report on the dispute and MTN payment communications.

Oyemike, in his petition, also alleges that MTN deliberately deleted emails in question to prevent their future use as evidence in any possible litigation over the dispute.

“I noticed the scenario where MTN, a telecommunications company (was) recalling or making unreadable an email conveying monetary payments to one of its employees and, based on the Nigerian Cybercrime Act of 2015, this is a violation of the law, ” Oyemike stated.

He stated that his realization that MTN may have violated several laws and regulations with its actions led him to seek redress through the appropriate legal channels "to ensure that justice is done and to prevent this corporate bullying by MTN from happening to any other Nigerian."

CITY VOICE reports that MTN declined comment on the matter, arguing that it does not comment on matters before the court.

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